Various devices have been utilized to deliver electrical power to a vehicle for the purpose of recharging batteries of the vehicle, and the like. For example, my previous U.S. Pat. No. 4,850,879, issued on Jul. 25, 1989, illustrates such a device. Likewise, U.S. Pat. No. 3,603,860, issued on Sep. 7, 1971 to Johnson, discloses another such device. A primary objective of such devices is to enable a vehicle with a plug assembly to engage a fixture with a socket assembly, thereby completing an electrical circuit between the fixture and the vehicle in order to supply electrical power to the vehicle. Another objective of such devices is to enable the motion of the vehicle to complete the circuit, thereby eliminating the need for a human operator to manually engage the plug with the socket. As such, these prior art devices are more convenient to use than previously known manual engagement methods.
However, several drawbacks exist to the prior art devices that utilize the motion of the vehicle to complete the electrical circuit. For instance, from the perspective of the driver's seat of the vehicle, it is sometimes difficult to judge when the circuit has been completed. As such, there is a considerable risk that the driver will move the vehicle too far into the fixture and damage it. Such prior art devices are not built to absorb much error on the part of the driver, and therefore tend to be short-lived, even with the best drivers.
A further drawback of such devices is that they require the vehicle to be precisely angularly and laterally aligned with the power fixture. Maneuvering a large vehicle with such precision is difficult, especially in a crowded space such as a garage. As such, devices of this type are inconvenient to use since they typically require several attempts by the driver to precisely align the vehicle with the fixture. Further, if the driver thinks that the vehicle is properly aligned and, in fact, it is not, damage to the fixture may readily result when the vehicle approaches the fixture incorrectly.
A further drawback of some of the prior art devices is that there is no mechanical, reliable indication of when the circuit has been engaged. As such, the driver may have successfully engaged the device and, not aware of such, continues to drive the vehicle forward. Such prior art devices, therefore, tend to become damaged since they do not effectively inform the driver that positive engagement has taken place with the fixture.
Clearly, then, there is a need for a device that allows a driver of a vehicle to quickly and effectively engage a power source to the vehicle. Such a needed device would allow such engagement from a relatively wide range of angular and lateral displacements relative to the power source. Further, such a needed device would indicate clearly when positive engagement of the vehicle to the power source is complete. Such a needed device, moreover, would be forgiving in that it would not become damaged if approached too closely by the vehicle. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages.